Tag: chaucer
-
An Appeal to Common Wisdom in the Final Tale: The Parson’s Tale
The “Parson’s Tale” is the final story of The Canterbury Tales. In the “General Prologue,” the Parson is described as a ‘good man of religion.’ He is erudite, scholarly, devout, and forgiving. The Parson believes that in order to be a good priest he must be perfect, because sheep follow their shepherd, but only if […]
-
On The Wisdom of Silence in The Manciple’s Tale
After the close of the “Canon’s Yeoman’s Tale” the Host merrily asks the embarrassingly drunken Cook to tell a tale (his earlier tale was left unfinished). However, the Cook can barely sit upon his horse, much less tell a tale. We find his character laughable because of his immoderate alcohol consumption and his physical ridiculousness […]
-
Trickery and Alchemy in the Canon’s Yeoman’s Tale
“But al thyng which that shineth as the goldNis nat gold, as that I have herd it told;” (962-963) Neither the Canon (a priestly administrator of a cathedral) nor his Yeoman are mentioned in Chaucer’s “General Prologue.” Instead, they ride quickly from the previous town and meet up with the traveling group of storytellers at Boughton […]
-
Authorship in the Second Nun’s Tale
The “Second Nun’s Tale” begins with a warning about the vice of idleness (“English idleness”). Her tale is about “Seint Cecilie” (Saint Cecilia) and it is intended to cure the problem of idleness. A tale of martyrdom is intended not simply to be entertaining, but to inspire a call to life. The prologue to her […]
-
Deprivation and Excess in The Tale of Sir Thopas and The Tale of Melibee
Chaucer, the pilgrim, is the only member of the group who is allowed to present a second tale on the way to Canterbury. He delivers his second tale following the failure of his minstrel song, “The Tale of Sir Thopas.” The second tale is told in prose form. It is about a rich man named […]
-
On Chaucerian Irony in the Tale of Sir Thopas
Chaucer describes the whole group as “sobre” after the previous tale, a story of martyrdom told by the Prioress. Then the Host starts joking and for the first time he looks down at the narrator -the fictional character of Chaucer, who is an unusually quiet and observant person. He is an intellectual: maladroit, moody, somber, […]
Great Books Guy 